I don't want it not to be true
by Ang1
Summary: Finally Updated Again! Yay! MA What Max's reasons should have been for not denying Logan's assumptions in HG.
1. Default Chapter

I step out onto the Needle and see her. "Hey Max, thought I'd find you here."  
  
"I come here to be alone."  
  
"Yeah, I know, but considering everything that went down today I figured we could both use a friend right now."  
  
"Sit down."  
  
"So, you got any deep thoughts you want to share, any profound realizations about life?" I ask her carefully.  
  
"Yeah, love sucks." She replies.  
  
"How did you manage to convince him?"  
  
She laughs a bit. "You don't want to know." She glances over at me. "But you might want to avoid him for a few weeks."  
  
I raise an eyebrow. "Why, did you tell him we're having an affair?"  
  
Her eyes close and she looks away.  
  
"You told him we're having an affair?" I ask incredulously.  
  
"I didn't so much tell him as didn't correct him." She confesses.  
  
I sigh. "Dammit Max, why do I always have to be the bad guy?"  
  
"That's not why I went along with it Alec."  
  
"Then why? Because I don't like this Max."  
  
"You could always tell him the truth."  
  
"Not until you tell me why you didn't deny it."  
  
***FLASHBACK***  
  
"I've said everything I needed to say."  
  
"I don't think so, I think there's something else."  
  
"Logan –  
  
"Or is it someone else?"  
  
"What?"  
  
"I needed to talk to you, so I came by your apartment. And I saw him leaving. I mean if I've got it wrong, just say so. Tell me it's not true."  
  
"I can't. It's over. We're done. Get used to it."  
  
***END FLASHBACK***  
  
"I didn't want to." She whispers, glancing over at me.  
  
My eyebrows shoot up at that. "Why?"  
  
She looks back out across the city. "I don't have to pretend with you Alec. I don't have to be a revved up human. I can be transgenic." She admits softly.  
  
"What changed?"  
  
She smirks. "I was thinking about what you said last night at Crash. You were right. The virus isn't the only thing that causes problems for Logan and I. Never was."  
  
"You're stronger than him, faster." I point out.  
  
"And there are people trying to kill me."  
  
"Okay, so now I know why you had to push him away, why use me to do it?"  
  
She smiles a little. "When he said it, I took the time to think about it. I knew that if I didn't say something solid, he would never let it go. And agreeing with him, involving you...I know it wasn't right, but I...I didn't want to deny it Alec."  
  
I move closer to her. "Why not?"  
  
"I thought about it for a bit when he said it. It didn't seem like a bad thing. You're warm, generous, caring. I could do worse." She pauses to smile. "I know this isn't like me, but the truth is, you're better for me than Logan ever was. I didn't want to say there was nothing between us, because I didn't want there to be nothing between us."  
  
"I don't know what to say to that Maxie."  
  
"I didn't think you would. I had actually made the decision not to tell you. But then I realized that was unfair. You deserve the chance to deny it."  
  
"Now what kind of friend would I be if I did that?"  
  
"I wouldn't blame you Alec."  
  
I look over at her and see she's telling the truth. I move closer and pull her into a soft hug. "So what would be involved in this?" I ask. "Would you stop threatening to kick my ass?"  
  
She smiles and settles against me. "I suppose I could look into that – providing you don't do anything really stupid."  
  
"For example?"  
  
"Getting yourself kidnapped by White...hitting on random girls at Crash. Things like that."  
  
"And would there be any...other benefits?" I grin down at her.  
  
"We'll see what happens." She whispers softly, and I smile. 


	2. Tired of Running

As Alec and I sit next to Joshua I can feel my anger grow again. How dare he. Of all the ridiculous stunts – he had to kill an innocent? I feel myself start to shake. "We're going to make this right big fella." I mutter darkly, and through our linked arms around Joshua I feel Alec tense in surprise. "Pack a bag, it's time for us to be with our own."  
  
I get up and cross to the window, watching the people walk down the street. When he comes up behind me I don't move.  
  
"Max, what are you talking about?"  
  
"I don't want to run anymore Alec. I've been playing an elaborate game of escape and evade for 12 years. It's time to fight back." I turn to face him. "We're here. We're different. We matter." I say calmly.  
  
"And just where are we going to make this stand?"  
  
"The one place they can't force us out of. Terminal City." I look up into his eyes. "Alec we were trained – bred – to fight for our country. This country. Well, this country doesn't want us. Let's make our own."  
  
"What changed your mind?" he asks softly. "Don't get me wrong Maxie, I like this idea, because you're right. We were bred to fight back. But you've been all about avoiding exposure."  
  
"We're exposed. White saw to that." I feel the tears in my eyes rise up again and feel Alec pull me into his chest tightly. "I never wanted it to come to this Alec. I just wanted my own little corner. I don't have it anymore. But other than my unit, we're talking about a group of people with the combined military minds of the world crammed into their heads. We're smarter than them, we're faster than them, and we can outlast them by days."  
  
"What about the familiars? Max, they –  
  
"Have spent thousands of years breeding themselves into the perfect humans. But that's just it Alec. They're still human."  
  
"Aren't we?"  
  
"We're also animals. And we're fighting for freedom; the ultimate incentive for any fighter. Especially ones with revved up perfect genetics."  
  
"We won't make it tonight."  
  
"Then we'll go tonight. It'll give us a chance to grab some clothes."  
  
"Are you sure you want to do this? Because if we call in the troops; that's it. We're committed."  
  
"I'm sure." I look up at him without letting go. "As much as I hate Manticore – even now – this is who we are Alec. I've tried for years to blend in with normal humans. It didn't work. It's never going to work. I didn't want to face that. But he crossed the line. He killed Annie. He broke my friend's heart. It's time for us to take a stand."  
  
He nods. "Then let's do it." We look over at Joshua, who has been silently observing us the whole time, I realize.  
  
"No more laying low?" he asks.  
  
"That's the plan." Alec affirms. "Max and I have to go into work, but we'll be back to pick you up as soon as we get off."  
  
I cross over to Joshua. "We'll be back soon big fella."  
  
"I'll be okay little fella."  
  
I hug him tightly. "I know, it's me I'm worried about."  
  
Joshua nods to Alec. "Alec watch out for Max, that's the plan."  
  
I smile over at Alec. "I suppose it is." I agree, enjoying the light that appears in his eyes.  
  
"We should get going." He motions to the door, and I nod.  
  
"See you tonight Joshua." I follow Alec out the door and manage to tuck myself under his arm as we walk down the stairs. He pulls me closer, and I place my arm around his waist to anchor us together.  
  
As we approach our bikes, he speaks. "You know you're going to have to move out of OC's, right? It wouldn't be –  
  
"Safe for her. I know. I hate it, but I know." I pause. "I suppose I could just take myself to your apartment." I grin up at him.  
  
"You want to move in with me already? I don't know Max – it's a little soon. We haven't even kissed yet." He grins cockily.  
  
So he wants to play, does he? I can play. "Well, fine then." I say huffily, and turn away abruptly. I sense his confusion and grin, then turn back and pull his head down to capture his lips with mine.  
  
I feel the shudder run through his body as he pulls me closer to him, molding my body to his tightly, his tongue sweeping gently across my lips before plunging into my mouth. I relax into the feel of the kiss and feel him grin on my lips as I purr.  
  
"It's not that funny." I murmur calmly.  
  
"It really was." He whispers, kissing my briefly and resting his forehead against mine. "Sexy too."  
  
I smile. "So..." I tilt my head. "Do I get to move in or not?"  
  
"I don't know Max. I could use a little more convincing." I feel his hands rest on my hips. "I mean, what would I be getting out of this arrangement?"  
  
"Me."  
  
He lowers his face a bit. "You?"  
  
"Me." I whisper, and he presses his lips to mine again and I wrap my arms around his neck to support myself as I tremble from the feel of his hands traveling up my back."  
  
We break apart and he fingers my hair. "Much as I'd like to continue this, if we don't get to work soon, Normal is going to fire your cute little ass."  
  
I grin. "I could live with that."  
  
"But not without a sector pass. Go." He points at my Ninja, and I climb on, pulling out, and hearing him pull out behind me. 


	3. MotorPony

When Max and I walk into JamPony wrapped around one another we cause a fair stir. Even Normal can't seem to come up with anything to say to us about the fact that we're an hour late. "Wanna play a game?" I ask her softly, knowing the cat in her won't be able to resist.  
  
She nods, and tilts her head up to kiss me softly. "Grab me a package babe?" she requests a bit louder than is strictly necessary.  
  
"Sure." I deadpan, but grin when I feel her slap my ass before turning to walk over to the lockers. "You need to work on that fixation you've got with my ass Maxie." I call to her back.  
  
She pauses, and glances back at me playfully. "Same to you Alec." She calls back, and shimmies her butt a bit, laughing.  
  
I can't help but grin as OC yanks her to a bench, then nearly groan as I remember I have to go talk to Normal at the counter to get the packages.  
  
"What would posess you to take up with missy miss?" he asks me incredulously. "She'll only bring you down my boy."  
  
"We understand each other." I offer, then raise my hand to shut him up. "I don't want to hear it Normal. It's none of your business. We do need packages though." I grin at him.  
  
He grimaces, and grabs a stack of packages. "I'm feeling generous, so you and missy miss can take these up to Sector 12 together."  
  
I stare at him. He has got to be kidding me if he thinks I'm riding my freaking bike up to Sector 12 again. I'm sick of riding a freaking bike. "Sector 12? Normal, that's gonna' take hours." I complain. "Unless...  
  
"What?" he asks, leaning forward.  
  
"I was just thinking that you seem to lose an awful lot of time sending us on these runs to the outer sectors."  
  
"Nothing I can do about it Alec. We're bike messengers."  
  
"Well, I was just thinking, Max and I both have motorcycles...  
  
"What, like a MotorPony service?" he suggests.  
  
"Exactly! That's brilliant! You're a genius."  
  
"I could even charge the customers more for it – faster service and all."  
  
"Totally." I agree. "And if it works out well, I know of a few people looking for work who just happen to have bikes. Old friends of mine from my fighting days." Sort of.  
  
"Bring them in, I'm positive it'll be fine." He looks at me. "What are you standing there for? Bip, bip, bip, Alec. No time like the present!"  
  
I scurry away, pleased with my efforts. If we're going to organize the transgenics into any kind of a fighting force, the Xs are going to need sector passes. I walk up to Max and OC, who looks up at me carefully. "If you hurt my boo, I'll lay the smack down, perfect genes or not." She threatens.  
  
I move behind Max and rest my hands on her shoulders. "It's a good thing I don't plan on hurting her then?"  
  
OC nods, and grimaces. "I gotta blaze, Normal's got me in Sector 3 today."  
  
"Later OC." I acknowledge, and sit down next to Max. "She seemed to take it well."  
  
Max smiles wistfully. "She knows why. That I'm worried about her safety. She respects that."  
  
"I have a surprise for you." I grin.  
  
"Already?"  
  
"We just volunteered to join a new department of the JamPony Messenger Service."  
  
She makes a face. "Why would we do that?"  
  
"It's called MotorPony."  
  
Her eyes light up. "Really? No more bike?"  
  
"Nope. Plus, I get to bring in 'friends from my old fighting days' to fill up the fleet. I thought I could get a few Xs jobs, if we're going to do this fighting thing, we're going to need to get around."  
  
"Nice thinking." She leans over and touches her lips to mine and I can't help but smile once more.  
  
"I like it when you kiss me." I tell her honestly, and notice a flush on her cheeks.  
  
"I like it too." She whispers, and I kiss her again.  
  
"Not on my time lovers!" Normal's voice interrupts us. "Bip, bip, bip!"  
  
"Later." I promise, and lead her out to our bikes. As we're climbing on, I notice a familiar face at the other end of the alley. "Go to my apartment, and don't leave until I get there." I mutter to her, placing a few packages in the bag to avoid suspicion.  
  
"What? Why?" she asks.  
  
"I'll be there soon, just go." She nods, and I walk slowly up to the girl. "Maxie, Maxie, Maxie. Where have you been all day? Normal is freaking out." I say, tightly wrapping my arms around her shoulders. "What do you want 453?" I whisper tightly.  
  
She looks up at me helplessly. "Let me go 494. I have to find her." She struggles.  
  
"Then I wouldn't be fighting me if I were you. You're making yourself conspicuous."  
  
"And just how am I doing that?" she shoots at me.  
  
"Women don't usually fight their boyfriends when they wrap an arm around their shoulders." I say calmly.  
  
Her eyes snap to mine. "Where is she?"  
  
"Play nice and I'll take you to her. My name is Alec now, by the way. Come on, let's go." I guide her to my motorcycle and drive us to Max and OC's to avoid running into Max before I'm ready.  
  
She sits on the couch noisily and I cross my arms. "What do you want with Max."  
  
"That's my business."  
  
"And now it's mine."  
  
"How could you be dating her? You know what she did to us."  
  
"That wasn't her. It wasn't any of them. It was Manticore. You know that as well as I do. They escaped to fight for their own survival. They didn't know what would happen."  
  
"Of course they knew! We all knew!"  
  
"No, we didn't. Until they escaped, none of us knew anything about Psy-Ops, or reindoc. We didn't know. Now tell me what you want with Max."  
  
She looks away. "I need to find her."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"Call it a case of mistaken identity." She sneers.  
  
"So someone thought you were her?"  
  
"Yeah." She deadpans.  
  
"Who?'  
  
"I don't know, some government guy."  
  
"Stop lying to me."  
  
"Special Agent Ames White." She spits out.  
  
I sigh. "What does he have on you?"  
  
She looks at me with shock. "How did you...  
  
"What does he have...do you have a name yet?"  
  
"Sam." She whispers.  
  
"Okay. Sam, what is he holding against you to get you to turn against your sister."  
  
"She's not my –  
  
"Yes she is. Genetically, she's your sister. No matter what they taught us at Manticore, our doubles are our siblings. In my case, it's a past tense issue, but moving on. What does White have Sam?"  
  
"My family." She whispers. "I was three years into a deep cover mission when I got word Manticore had burned. All of a sudden, I was free."  
  
"And you were in love with your mark." I finish, thinking of Rachel.  
  
She looks at me strangely. "No, I was in love with one of my neighbours. Jason. He has a beautiful little boy. I adopted him last month." She hardens her face again. "I have to turn in 452 to White in exchange for my family back."  
  
"He won't do it." I tell her.  
  
"You think I don't know that? But I have to try Alec. I have to try."  
  
A plan forms up in my head. "I think I can get you out of this – but you have to play along."  
  
She meets my gaze. "Okay." 


	4. Focus, dammit!

I pace his apartment nervously. "'Go to my apartment Max' he says; stupid idiot. What the hell is going on?" I mutter darkly, entering his kitchen. "If I have to wait, I'm eating his food." I declare needlessly.  
  
As I begin to munch on my cereal, the door opens and Alec comes in behind a petite brunette. I smirk. "It's customary to bring your random girls home with you when your new girlfriend isn't at your apartment Alec." I call out.  
  
He smirks right back. "I didn't." He nods toward the small girl and I glance at her briefly, then look back at her incredulously.  
  
"You're kidding me, right?" I look to him for confirmation.  
  
"Max, I'd like you to meet X5-453. Sam, this is Max."  
  
"They cloned me too?"  
  
"Honestly Maxie, I think they cloned you first." He grins.  
  
"Gee, thanks."  
  
"No, really. Your designations are earlier than Ben's and mine. They cloned you first."  
  
"Could you get to the point?" Sam interrupts.  
  
"Am I that bossy?" I ask Alec sharply.  
  
He raises an eyebrow. "I refuse to answer that on the grounds that it will incriminate me." He smiles lightly.  
  
"Ass." I mutter.  
  
"Again with the ass Maxie? We're going to have to work on that."  
  
Well, it is very nice...  
  
"Seriously. My family is being held against their will by a crazed out NSA guy." Sam cuts in.  
  
"Right." Alec acknowledges, and turns back to me. "So, Sam here got picked up by our favorite person in San Francisco yesterday."  
  
"Why was that not the first thing you told me?" I ask.  
  
"You distracted me, said they cloned you 'too', but you were cloned first. You're older than me."  
  
"By approximately twenty minutes smart-ass." I shove his torso a bit and lean into him.  
  
"Would you two please focus?" Sam shouts.  
  
Alec clears his throat, and meets my eyes. "Yeah, so, she's supposed to track you down and bring you in."  
  
"Naturally your first thought was therefore 'I'll introduce them'." I deadpan.  
  
"No." he states. "First I took her to your apartment."  
  
I smile a bit. "You took another girl to my apartment?"  
  
"Would my repeating that she's your clone sent to capture you and bring you into White help my case at all?"  
  
"Possibly. But I'd still have to kick her ass for taking my man."  
  
"Your man? That's new."  
  
"You thought I meant something else this morning?"  
  
"Are the two of you always like this?" Sam cuts in quickly.  
  
I glance over at her. "Only on Tuesdays."  
  
"Maxie, it's Thursday." Alec interjects.  
  
"I suppose we really are always like this then. That thing with –  
  
"We'll just have to be more forceful."  
  
"I'm sorry but I really need the two of you to focus. Otherwise I really will just –  
  
"We can't do anything about it until tomorrow Sam." Alec says softly. "I wish we could do it tonight, but there just isn't enough time to get everything in place before then."  
  
"Everything in place for what, exactly?" she asks.  
  
"I swear to god Alec, if this involves me posing as a stripper again –  
  
"Only if you want it to." He smiles down at me warmly.  
  
I bite my lip. "Some other time." I smile at his expression. "So the old steel plant?"  
  
"Best place to find a heavy pipe to crack Amesy in the head with."  
  
"Holy shit." Sam mutters darkly. "I can't believe you did that right in front of me. Now I know."  
  
I look at her nervously, tensing next to Alec a bit. "How did you guess?" I ask softly.  
  
"Yeah, it took me two whole days to figure out she knew that's what she was doing." Alec grins.  
  
"You were trained for it 494. I wasn't." she looks at me. "That's how you stayed hidden for as long as you did; off the radar. You're alpha." She whispers.  
  
"Don't tell Zack." I mutter darkly.  
  
"Zack didn't know?" Alec asks.  
  
"He never needed to. And I never bothered to use it either."  
  
"You were never trained though."  
  
I lock eyes with Alec, and he nods. "They started communication training for the X5s who displayed alpha traits when we were about three. By the time we were six, they were helping us integrate into the established structures. We were under orders not to use our advantages unless it was tactically necessary to have the unit completely under control."  
  
Alec looks at Sam. "She escaped about six months before the oldest X5s began to display symptoms of heat. When she left, none of us had made ourselves known to our units. We were all SICs."  
  
"My shark DNA was causing seizures; seratonin deficiencies. My CO made the decision to get me out, and it didn't make tactical sense to override him, because by his reasoning, it was to get me out." I pause. "As soon as my first heat was over, I started searching for Zack; I knew he would know how to get in touch with the others. When he finally found me, he informed me he had them all isolated around the country; they weren't all together. So long as they weren't too close together, I knew they would be fine. I didn't bother telling him what I knew."  
  
"I still can't believe that you were able to do it so seamlessly." She pauses. "You're an 09er. You're supposed to be ignorant."  
  
I smile. "Because they told you so in a room with a projector?" I ask.  
  
"They told us that for twelve years...I mean, they never said anything specifically about you until about ten months before you were recaptured, but –  
  
"They didn't know where I was Sam. They didn't even know I was still alive until Ben..." I trail off. "He was too far gone. I couldn't get through to him. I never forgave Zack for keeping them from me after that night."  
  
Alec turns to Sam. "Back to the matter at hand. We'll meet up with you at the plant tomorrow at midnight. You'll make the call, and I'll tie you up."  
  
"Why should you get to fight him?"  
  
"Because I can focus on the task. It's not my family at risk."  
  
"Right." She agrees. "Why so late?"  
  
"He's seen Max's DNA workup. He knows you wouldn't be able to get the drop on her unless it was dark."  
  
"If he's seen –  
  
"You're not twins Sam, you're clones. She's alpha, you're not. There are specific sequences that she has that you don't."  
  
"Such as?"  
  
"That's none of your business." I say calmly. "Lay low, we'll see you tomorrow night at the plant."  
  
"Right." She nods, and leaves.  
  
"You've seen my DNA workup, haven't you?" I ask him softly.  
  
"I have." He admits.  
  
"What does it mean?"  
  
"I don't know Max." he says softly. "I recognized the alpha feline sequences, most of your feline DNA is either lioness or tigress; a small amount of panther. Similar to my own actually. I do know that I've always had this urge to protect you. Keep you safe."  
  
"Right." I settle in against him. "We should get back." I mutter softly.  
  
His arms wrap around me lightly. "Probably. If we don't get those packages out and head into the office Normal's gonna fire your cute butt."  
  
I grin up at him and touch our lips lightly. "Then let's get gone."  
  
**** 


	5. Alpha Training background

omg; I'm so sorry about that. usually, before I post a story, I remember to post all the background information I've created to support plot twists. the way Sam figured out that they're alpha is a bit more complex, I only have that stuff in handwritten notes; basically it boils down to a certain way the alphas speak to one another. they speak in short, vague sentences with certain meanings. these were developped after the heat incidents (briefly covered in this section of my story), when the alphas were placed in command of their units. Max would have received a briefing about them when she was recaptured; being alpha herself. that's kind of a crappy explanation, but it's more along the lines of an instint that got recognized and honed when they were between 3 and 9 at Manticore.

I'm working with the assumption that female Xs as young as 11 began going into heat depending on the type of feline DNA they had.

I really hope this helps everyone who was confused about the alpha thing, at least a bit. It's only a quick overview of a lot of notes, but I think it's an okay one. I'll try to explain more through the rest of the parts in the story

ang1

**July 2004**

I don't look at the others in the room, but my gaze does follow Commander Lydecker as he moves between us, observing him, as he observes us.  
  
He reaches the front of the room, and begins to speak. "Do any of you know why you're here?" he asks us.  
  
"SIR NO SIR!" we chorus.  
  
"You're here because you've begun to display certain traits that the others have not. We will teach you to use those traits to keep your units in line with command."  
  
"SIR YES SIR!"  
  
"You're stronger than them, faster than them, smarter than them." He pauses. "You also value their safety above the completion of the mission."  
  
I regard him calmly, attempting to determine if this is a failing I should strive to overcome.  
  
"We've been training you for three years now, separate from your units. We've taught you all you'll need to know to control your units if necessary."  
  
"SIR YES SIR!"  
  
"Don't use it." He states calmly.  
  
We don't speak. For three years now, he has trained us to regard our units, apart from our units. He has taught us how to assert ourselves by our very stances. He has taught us how to make ourselves known to one another should we engage in the field.  
  
He has taught us to step back and allow the military command to choose C.O.s who are not as powerful as we are to run our units. To allow them to properly focus on the completion of the missions above the safety of the unit.  
  
"Your skills are for use only in the extremest of necessity. If one in your unit turns on the rest, you must re-align them. If one is endangering the mission, you must bring them to task. You must never disrupt the chain of command."  
  
I think of our unit C.O.; 511. He is single-minded. Focused on the objective.  
  
Weak.  
  
He places the needs of others above those of the unit.  
  
I regard the Commander and begin to understand that we are to be the heart. We are to be the ones for whom our units fight. We are to gain loyalty, trust.

**July 2006  
**  
"You have all been briefed on your genetic makeups to some degree." He pauses.  
  
"SIR YES SIR!"  
  
"Your feline genetics will rebel against allowing others to command. You will consider yourselves what we term as an animal's Alpha. This will cloud you to the mission objectives. You will find yourselves unable to make decisions for the good of Manticore if you are permitted to command. This is why you do not have command."  
  
"SIR YES SIR!"  
  
"When you return to your units, you will not speak of this. You will not influence those in your unit. You will follow orders; you will fall in line with command. You will only use your influence if your unit members pose a threat to one another."  
  
"SIR YES SIR!"  
  
"You will reassemble daily, here, for continued training at 0430 and 2100. This begins tonight. Dismissed."  
  
We exit the room, and return to our bunks. Upon entering, 511 approaches me.  
  
"Where have you been 494?" he asks.  
  
"Commander Lydecker summoned me for supplemental training, sir."  
  
"Concerning what?"  
  
"We were instructed it was classified, sir." I look at him calmly, and he nods.  
  
"Combat in ten minutes. Let's move out."

**April 2010**  
  
I'm staring at the roof of the bunkhouse when I notice the scent. It's heady and sweet. I glance around the room, not wanting to acknowledge it, fearing they'll take me back to Psy-Ops.  
  
Stupid 'Niners.  
  
I see 511 and 737 staring intently at 217. She's wiping her brow, and shifting under their gaze. I scan the room and notice that all the males are focused on 217.  
  
The scent is hers.  
  
"What's new 217?" 665 asks lowly, moving nearer to her.  
  
511 growls, and pushes 665 out of the way.  
  
This could be bad.  
  
I hurry across the room, shaking off the scent quickly. "Stand down." I order sharply.  
  
"You can't have her 494." 511 grates, and a quick glance at 323 shows that she is enjoying this. I scan the room again and see that the other females have withdrawn to one side of the room.  
  
"686, 289, 323 and 398." I clip. "Get her out of here – isolated. Guard her until further notice. No males are to approach her. Even myself." I grind.  
  
They hesitate as they move closer, noticing her violent stare.  
  
"Do it." I put all the force I possess behind the words, and they move silently, but quickly.  
  
"Where do you get off undermining me 494?" 511 shouts, turning to follow the females.  
  
"Sit down." I order. "All of you." I turn, and stalk out of the room to the Commander's offices.  
  
The female at the desk raises her eyebrows at my presence, but allows me to enter.  
  
Commander Lydecker is observing photos of the escapees coldly, and turns to face me. "What do you want 494?"  
  
"Sir, X5-217 is influencing the males of the unit in a negative way."  
  
He raises an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"  
  
"She is seeking a mate, sir."  
  
His eyes widen. "She's what?"  
  
"She is seeking a mate, sir." I repeat. "I've isolated her from the unit and ordered the other females in the unit to keep males away from her."  
  
"You're their alpha, correct?" he asks.  
  
"Yes sir." I acknowledge coldly.  
  
"You were ordered –  
  
"Never to use my influence unless the unit members were a threat to one another. Sir." I clarify.  
  
"217 seeking a mate is hardly –  
  
"Sir, they were beginning to fight amongst themselves, and she was encouraging them."  
  
"Report back to your unit. I'll have the doctors look into it." It is 0430 when we are once again summoned to the training rooms, and Commander Lydecker is walking between us, observing yet again.  
  
"You have all been given CO status for your units. The female heat cycles pose real and dangerous threats to your unit's capability to perform. The missions are your primary objectives. You are to remain focused on them. Keep your females in line, female alphas; when you feel the signs of your own heats approaching, you are ordered to turn yourselves into isolation. Understood?"  
  
"SIR YES SIR!"  
  
"Dismissed." 


	6. Ink

I pull into Jam Pony with a roar, grinning at Normal when he starts to shout about the engine. "Can't hear you Normal! Engine's too loud!" I kill it and he stalks over.

"No bikes in the warehouse Missy miss." He crosses his arms.

I smile. "I am **_not _**leaving my baby out front to be stolen Normal. If you're not giving us raises for this MotorPony service, we get to park inside." I meet his gaze head on.

He glares at me. "Whatever. There's a group of miscreants over there claiming they know Alec. I don't believe them. Since the two of you are together, would you mind getting rid of them?"

I raise an eyebrow and glance at the gathered group, meeting one of the males' eyes briefly. "Alec's old fighting buddies. They have cycles."

"Those are Alec's friends?"

"Yes."

"Come with me to get their sector passes."

_I think I like being Alec's girlfriend._ I smile and follow Normal to the window, grab the passes, and turn to the group.

I walk over to them and see their tense stances. "Kick back, relax. I come bearing Sector passes." I smile tightly.

Their frames relax a bit at the near command.

"Who are you?" the nearest male asks.

"Why is it that in units with male C.O.s the male is always the first to question a new arrival?"

They look at one another guiltily.

"I'm Max, and like I said, I come bearing Sector Passes."

"You're alpha, like 494."

"We call him Alec here."

"Even you?"

I smile. "Especially me."

"X5-511; now known as Biggs, reporting ma'am."

"Ever call me ma'am again and your balls will never fall back down."

His eyes widen. "Right then."

"Also, I don't need to know your designations. Just your names. I'll get designations when it becomes necessary."

"Some of us don't have names yet." Biggs offers carefully.

I sigh. "Seriously? They had you that tightly controlled that you had to wait?"

He nods. "Special Ops."

"Good to know." I glance at the group of seven. "Names?"

"Mikey." The tall brown haired guy offers. "665 doesn't have a name yet." He indicates the other male.

I glance at the girls. The blonde lifts a hand. "I'm Cece, red hair is Blaze, and black hair is Jasmine."

I nod, and glance at 665. "I suppose you're waiting for Alec to name you?"

He nods.

"Until then I'm gonna call you Dick, aiight? People out here have names, not numbers."

"Bip, Bip, Bip! Let's go missy miss!" I grab the package that Normal tosses at me and groan.

"Normal, come on. I just got in."

"Suck it up princess!"

I sigh, and turn back to the Xs. "Blend. Mellow. Alec will be in soon, just let him know I'm out on a run."

As I walk by the desk I freeze when Jason pulls a gun on Wheels.

"He's got a code man! He's got one of those barcodes!" he shouts, and I glance over at Alec's unit. They quickly fan out to back me up.

I step slowly towards Jason. "Put the gun away Jase. Come on, you don't want to do this. You've known Wheels for years."

He moves the gun around, pointing it in front of him. "He's got a barcode." He turns the gun on Wheels again.

_Shit._ I notice his finger push on the trigger slowly, and make a grab for the gun, accidentally breaking his arm. _Oops_. I glance at Biggs, whose eyebrows lift, and he nods carefully that the room is secure. "You okay Jase?" I ask carefully.

"How the hell?" he asks, cradling his arms.

"I'm a black belt. Started when I was little." I reach over to the back of Wheels' neck, and wipe off the ink. "Ink Jase. Pay attention next time."


	7. Stupid, Stupid Logan

As I stroll back into Jam Pony, Sketchy comes up to me. "Check it out man – Max just broke Jason's arm!"

I lift an eyebrow. "She what?"

He shrugs. "Okay, so it's a muscle sprain, but she was kick ass fast! Just between us, I think she might be one of those mutants. That X series that looks human. Normal and I are going to check her for a barcode."

I shake my head a bit in shock. "Sketchy man, how could that be? That place only burned down what, 6 months ago?"

He nods.

"And you've known Max for a couple years."

"Yeah, but Eyes Only says that a bunch of them escaped more than ten years ago."

_Stupid Fucking Logan Stupid Fucking Logan. Stupid Fucking Logan. Stupid Fucking Logan. _"True, but you'd have picked up on it." I insist. _Stupid Fucking Logan and his stupid fucking Eyes Only._

He nods slowly. "You're right. Normal will probably still check though. No harm, no foul, right?"

I smile tightly. "Absolutely." I gesture inside. "I should get in there."

"Yeah." He agrees, and crosses to his bike, taking off.

I quickly move inside and approach Max near the lockers. "Hey Maxie." I wrap my arms around her and kiss her neck lightly.

She smiles. "Hey you."

"You need a touchup." I whisper just below human hearing.

Her eyes widen. "I just got one yesterday." She murmurs back.

"It's coming back faster then."

She sighs. "How did you know to check?"

I turn her in my arms. "You sprained Jason's arm. Normal and Sketchy are curious."

"In my defense he pulled a gun on Wheels."

I tighten my hold on her a bit as she leans into me. "Okay, but come on. We need these sector passes. You know that."

She kisses me lightly. "Speaking of backup, Normal hired some friends of yours." I glance up and notice 511 standing with the rest of my unit. "He goes by Biggs." She murmurs.

"Biggs!" I call out.

He grins. "Alec!"

I wince as the unit members nearly stand at attention. We move to join them and I signal at ease, then sigh when they adopt a stance only a soldier would find comfortable. "Guys, come **_on_**, relax." I say firmly. They don't move. Max, of all people, giggles, and I glance down. "Something funny?"

She shakes her head, still giggling. "It's nothing." Her grin grows.

"Not that seeing you happy isn't a good change, but what's so funny?" I push.

"You thinking they're going to relax around you." she offers, and I freeze. _Fuck. She's right. I hate it when she's right._

"They need to relax Maxie." I say in their general direction.

She nods. "Biggs, come talk to Alec." She moves towards the others as 511 moves closer.

When he gets close enough, I nod. "So what's up with them?"

"Nice girl you got there." He comments lightly.

"You know that's not why you're here. What's wrong with them?"

"You're the one who told them 'at ease' of all things." He offers carefully.

"Biggs, they pulled me from CO. You know that."\

"That's the thing dude. You remember the reason you got _named_ CO? That still holds. It's why they know she's not 453, and why they haven't said anything to her about 09."

I sigh, and grin as they suddenly relax with whatever Max told them. "Do they have names?"

"Everyone but 665."

"Please don't tell me he was waiting for me."

"He's a techie 49 – Alec." He corrects himself quickly.

"You'll get used to it. It's why Maxie probably didn't ask for designations."

"Blonde is Cece, Red hair is Blaze. 398 decided to go by Jasmine, and 727 has been answering to Mikey."

"Mikey?" I ask carefully.

"Something about a really neat commercial he saw on one of his solos."

I lift my eyebrows. "The french fry kid?"

He nods. "That's the one."

"Nobody's heard from the others yet?"

He shrugs. "They were out on an op when Renfro tried to torch us. We were heading into TC tonight to check into it when 453 stopped us."

"What did Max call 665?"

"Dick."

I grin. "Of course she did." I mutter. "I'll talk to him."

"We were worried about you man. We couldn't find you anywhere after the fire, and then we saw that ridiculous hack about the Nomalie. Does that guy actually think Ordinaries are going to care that they were friends?"

"His name is Joshua, but yes, Eyes Only is pretty sure he makes a difference."

"You know him?"

"He's the reason I wasn't around for the fire." I glance at Max. "They gave her a retro-virus targeted to kill him. I was supposed to make sure it did."

Max's pager goes off then and she groans. I laugh, and toss her my cell. She hurls it back. "You call him." She calls.

I sigh, and glance at Biggs, whose eyebrows are lifted. "Yeah, I know him." I dial quickly.

"Max?" his voice asks through the phone.

"Nope, try again!" I grin into the phone.

"Alec." He deadpans. "I paged Max."

"I'm aware. What's up?"

"I need to ask her for a favor."

"Hang on." I hold the phone up towards her. "Logan needs a favor." I call over.

She glances up from her conversation with 323. _Blaze. That's going to take some doing. _"Tell him to stick it up his ass. I'm busy."

I put the phone back to my ear as Biggs begins to laugh. "Max says to stick it up your ass. She's busy." I repeat.

"It's important!" he shouts, and I wince. _Girlie voice much?_

"Just a sec." I glance back at Max. "He says it's important!"

She growls, and I grin. "I told you to call him so I wouldn't have to deal with this idiocy Alec. Get rid of him."

"And just how do you propose I do that?" I ask calmly, shaking my head at Biggs, whose laughter has increased.

"I don't care! I'm busy!"

"Max just took off her clothes Logan, we're going to have sex now." I end the call, and grin when she screeches as her pager goes off again.

She stalks over to me. "You suck." She mutters darkly.

I lean down to her ear. "Only if you ask really nicely Maxie." I whisper.

I feel her lean closer. "Promise?" her hands wrap around my waist.

I touch my lips to hers softly and smile. "Sure." I hold up my ringing cell. "That's probably for you." I murmur.

She takes it from me and flips it open. "What?" she clips.

"Thank god. Max, I think I –

"Fuck off Logan. We're busy." She cuts off the call.

"I really like her." Biggs comments lightly as he begins to recover.

I don't break eye contact with Max. "So do I." I wrap my arms around her tightly.

She moves in more closely. "Did Biggs explain to you not to give them commands?" she asks calmly.

"He did."

"BIP BIP BIP people!" Normal's voice cuts in. "The whole point of Motor Pony is faster service!" The unit begins to disperse, and I catch 665s attention as Max moves towards her bike in the middle of the room. _I wonder what that's about?_

"Hey." I nod at him to follow me out.

"You wanted to talk to me sir?"

"Didn't Max cover the 'sir' thing?" He hesitates, and I sigh. "Max called you Dick, right? I'm Alec by the way."

"Is that the name you're issuing me sir?"

I stop, and face him. "Is that the name you want? Because your name needs to be something you can live with for the rest of your life."

"I was Brad on a mission once. I liked it."

"Then Brad it is. Welcome to Seattle Brad."


	8. Not Dick

"I already told you why." I tell her calmly as I pack the small duffel.

"Yeah, to protect me. And I know I agreed, but you're my family boo."

I smile. "And you're mine. That's why I need you here. Safe. I can't be watching out for you on top of everything else we're about to start."

She nods. "I'm gonna miss you boo."

I'm about to respond when I hear a noise in the main room. "Stay here." I hiss at her. "That's not Alec." I move out of the room and sigh at the sight. "What the hell are you doing here Logan?"

"I need a favor." He says calmly.

I cross my arms. "I believe I told you to stick your favor up your ass. I don't have time for it."

"I think I found a Manticore scientist who can make the cure." He offers.

I drop my arms. "That's your favor." I deadpan. "I don't have time for this."

"There's more. White sent someone after you. I think I ran into her this morning, she looks –

"Her name is Sam. It's been dealt with." I cut him off, tilting my head slightly at Alec as he walks in. "I have to go."

I move back into my room and grab the bag. "It's clear?" OC asks carefully.

I snort. "If you can call Logan clear, then yeah."

She stands, and pulls me into a hug. "Don't be a stranger boo."

I nod into her hair. "I'll be around." I step out of the room with the bag. "We're dropping off first?" I ask Alec.

"Yeah, we'll want to walk for the second leg."

"Probably a good plan. How far away?"

"About fifteen blocks difference."

"Max – we need to talk about this." Logan insists.

I turn to him. "No, we don't. We already talked. We're done Logan." I turn to OC. "We'll see you at work tomorrow."

Alec and I exit the apartment, and I feel his arm go around me. "You okay?"

"He doesn't listen." I tell him softly.

"Never really has, no."

"Don't let me forget to do that touchup before work tomorrow. You need one too."

"I'm glad they came back in time for this."

"We wouldn't need them."

"We will for the nomalies."

"No we don't."

He freezes. "That's why we're picking up Joshua, isn't it?"

I nod. "We'll drop him off on our way to your place, we can come back just after dark." I climb onto my bike, and he nods, hopping on his before we take off for the small house on the edge of town.

It's about an hour later when we walk into the small apartment. "The others are heading into TC before us, right?" I ask, flopping onto his couch.

"Yeah. They're hoping to find the rest of our unit there."

"You're missing four members, right? I remember hearing about one of your females not surviving her first heat."

He nods sadly. "She freaked out, used her nails to slit her wrists in iso."

I wince. "I can't imagine what I would do in that situation. I mean, everything that happened to Ben, I nearly lost it, but I wasn't there, you know? By the time I got to him, it was too late."

He sits next to me and I curl up against his chest. "I was lost at first. The only thing that kept me going at the time was the fact that she had been in iso, and males – especially alphas – were banned from the heat iso wing. I couldn't have gotten to her."

I nod into his chest. "I need you to do something for me." I whisper carefully.

"What's up?"

"Zack is the only person who knows where the rest of my unit is. If we're going to start this, I need to call them in."

"And Logan set up amnesia boy on that farm."

I nod. "I was scared Alec, really scared. I'd never seen Zack snap like that. He was in full Manticore mode. I went there, set up a few security measures, but I need him brought in."

"I'll get Mikey and Blaze on it tonight."

"Thanks. Hey, what did you end up naming 665 by the way?"

"Not Dick." he deadpans.


	9. Stick Out Like A Sore Thumb

We walk into the courtyard slowly, being certain they can see that we're unarmed.

"Your kind are gathering on Oak Street." A deep voice calls from the shadows, and I zero in on it, taking in the tall desert ops transhuman.

"We're here to talk to you." I tell him. "We've decided we don't want to play escape and evade anymore. It's always been a pretty boring game."

The tall man walks out. "And you need someone to do your grunt work? Thanks, but no thanks. We don't do that anymore."

I notice Max nod. "Plus, we couldn't really use you for grunt work anyways. You stick out like a sore thumb."

I see his eyes narrow, and nearly groan until I feel her fingers trace a message on my hand. _Shut up._ "You'd better not be talking about my skin princess." The transhuman clips.

She shakes her head. "Nope. But the fact that you're like, eight feet tall? Sort of hard to miss."

It's all I can do not to laugh. I'd forgotten how good at subtle the female alphas can be.

"You'd think you were kidding, but something in your eyes tells me you're not." He mutters.

Max shrugs. "I'm strange that way." She glances at an alley across the street and I smile when Joshua steps out. "Hey big fella'." She calls.

"Hey little fella'." He waves back.

"You're the pair of alphas that want to start a country." The desert ops transhuman offers. "XT-

"I don't want your designation." Max cuts him off. "Designations are cold. Do you have a name?"

He seems surprised. "The others have taken to calling me Mole."

"Nice to meet you Mole. I'm Max, and this is Alec."

He glances between us. "If you don't want us to do grunt work, why do you want us?"

I shrug. "Your tactical is probably a hell of a lot more organized than the X5 tactical will be, you have a better location for getting in and out of the main city, most of you are probably better suited to run surveillance. We X5s are a little moody."

"You're talking like you haven't gone to Oak Street yet."

I meet his eyes. "We haven't. We need you first. Not just because of what I've already told you, but because when we go over there, a lot of things are going to happen very quickly. Things that you need to know about first."

"Such as?"

"One of the things Alec and I have been considering pretty heavily is not stopping our feline instincts. In some ways, that's a huge step forward. We'll be able to react a lot more quickly to emergencies."

"But then there are the problems associated with it." Mole offers. "Like heats."

Max nods. "And mating. It's not going to be easy to get the X5s in line until some of the other alphas come out of hiding. Our SICs will help, but you need to realize that we're going to lean towards favoring our own units above others. It's going to be up to you to remind us if there's a unit more suited to a task."

"You're kidding about the units, right? Because we don't have them over here."

I shake my head. "We'll probably always have units. It has to do with our pack instincts. A lot of us won't have problems adapting to the idea of a herd, but our loyalties to our packs, our units, won't just go away."

"You're talking about yourselves like animals."

"There's a reason most of the feline DNA is dormant in the X6s, and that the X7s and X8s are closer to hives than units. We're loyal – sometimes to a fault. Without alphas, the X5s will have very distinct lines drawn over there. We're going to get a large crowd of SICs, many of whom don't like each other much." Max offers. "When we go over there, you can't have that gun with you."

"See now that's just stupid. I'm not walking over there unarmed."

"If you go over there with a gun, they're going to think you're threatening their alphas, because believe me, they'll know **_fast_** who we are. We emit different pheromones." I tell him calmly.

"You're serious."

"Deadly." I admit.

He nods, and hands the gun to Joshua. "Let's go."


	10. Tactical Weakness

"When we stop, you stop." I say softly to Mole, and he nods slowly. I flick my eyes around the square, and see Biggs and Cece in a window south of us.

I feel Alec come to a stop, and do the same. After a few moments, a petite red-haired female and a tall latino male approach from the street east of us.

"What brings you above ground?" the male asks softly, and I flick my gaze around me once more to see many others filtering into the square.

"Escape and Evade got boring. It's time for us to show the government what it means to pick a fight with their elite special ops units." Alec responds.

"Females assemble here at 0530." I tell them calmly. "Until the other alphas come above, I'm going to need you all to think about a few minor guidelines." I feel a murmur of assent ripple through them, and glance around. "Primary SICs, we need a list of specialties and supplies in stock and needed by 0600 at the latest."

"Remember that we don't care if it's not your best area, just make sure you feel like performing the duty on a regular basis." Alec adds. "Males, when the females gather at 0530, I want you all at the football field. No stragglers at either end. Command will be operating out of the transhuman sector, section heads will be chosen by triad at the 0630 meeting."

"We need 511 to stay behind, the rest of you have work." I say, and they quickly disperse, leaving Biggs behind. I glance at Mole, and smile. "You okay?"

"We weren't that fast." He mutters.

Alec grins. "Yeah, well, we have our faults, but no one ever said we weren't quick."

"You wanted to talk to me?" Biggs asks.

I nod. "I need a favor." I bite my lip. "I know I'm not your CO, or even your pack alpha, but I need Mikey and Blaze."

His eyes widen. "You have someone you want us to grab?"

I glance at Alec. "They're the best at silent retrievals of AWOLS." He explains.

I nod. "Good to know." I look at Biggs. "You guys have no reasons to trust me."

"494 trusts you. That's all we need."

I nod. "Are you ever going to call him Alec?"

"I'm workin' on it." He shrugs.

"X5-599 is on a small farm not far from the Seattle border. The exact location is on Logan Cale's computer system. He thinks his name is Adam. I need you to bring him to me."

"You want to bring in a 'niner? Don't get me wrong, you're okay; but another one? Not really going to go over well."

I smile. "I'm going to let that slide because you're important to Alec." I say softly, and he nods carefully. "I need to tie up about a dozen loose ends in the next few days. The only way I can do that is by bringing Zack in."

Biggs sighs, and looks at Alec. "You're okay with this? Really? Because you know it won't be good."

"They're a tactical weakness." Alec says calmly. "If they're not here, you can sure as hell bet they'll be found and brought in out there. I know we can't use them for strategy, but we are going to need them for integration. They've been below ground for ten years. They know how to blend."

"So do we."

"No." I tell him carefully. "You know how to be invisible. There's a difference. Even I can't blend like they can. I could never get past my initial instincts to go to ground and stay there. But the others from my unit…they wouldn't have been able to stay down that long. They were too moody."

He sighs. "I'll send them. I don't like it, but I see your point. He'll be in by 0300."

I nod, and lead Alec and Mole away from the square. As we approach the transhuman command, I turn to Mole. "We have to go take care of lasering our barcodes. We'll be back in an hour."

"Would it be faster if I told you we have a laser here?"

I narrow my eyes. "Why do you have a laser here?"

He sighs. "Some of the guys, they don't like the reminder of Manticore. They like to get rid of their codes, and for us, it's easier if we do it here. We picked up a couple small ones to make our lives a little easier."

Alec nods. "Then let's get to work."


End file.
